Album
by vogelimkafig120
Summary: Sun and Lillie leave their 2-year-old daughter Rose in the care of Lusamine while they are away for their dinner night. Just before their arrival, Lusamine decides to show her granddaughter an old photo album of hers.


**Whew, took me a while to jot this one down. Oh, for some reason it's not allowing to me respond to reviews so I'm sorry for not doing so, but thank you for the feedback! I'm still working on perfecting fics in terms of Sun and Lillie with their child. Anyway, enjoy! ^_^**

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"And that's the story of how the Mimikyu was able to find a friend after searching for so long." Lusamine read to the 2-year child who snuggled closer to her as they laid on her bed. Said child happened to be Sun and Lillie's daughter Rose. Lusamine was babysitting her grandchild when Sun and Lillie needed someone to watch over her as they went to have dinner with Hau and Gladion at Malie City, where the city's famous sushi was served at. Rose was a complexion of her parents' distinctions, though instead of having blonde hair like most of her family members, she inherited her father's hair color while inheriting her mother's eyes.

The Aether President didn't mind at all as she was delighted to spend time with her granddaughter. Her husband Mohn did spend time with the two until he had to head over to the Conservation Area in order to feed the Pokémon and talk to his staff members. Rose did get a chance to feed a few of them, with Mohn teaching her on how to give them a bean properly. It felt nostalgic to Lusamine in a way as it brought back memories of Gladion and Lillie's early childhood years. Now, she could relive those moments with Rose, such as reading a classical tale that the grandmother used to read to her own children back then.

"I loved it, gramma!" Rose chirped happily as she clapped her hands. The Aether President's granddaughter's upbeat behavior always brought a smile onto her because after all of the atrocities that she committed in the past, she wouldn't dare for that kind of fate to befall onto Rose.

Thinking about it, Lusamine remembered how much she cried her heart out when she realized the full extent of her actions, not just to her own children but to those that didn't deserve it. All that she'd ever wanted was to find her husband again, but Nihilego's influence had manipulated her original desire into a chaotic one, one that resulted in her to treat her children wrong. Nowadays, it was a thing in the past, but she was dedicated in learning from her mistakes.

"I'm glad to hear that, sweetie." Lusamine replied as she set the book down. They only had around half an hour until Sun and Lillie would return to pick up Rose, so the Aether President pondered on what to do next. Then, Lusamine sprung into action as she rummaged through her bookshelf, trying to find the item of interest. After a minute of searching, she found what she was looking for, an old photo album.

Lusamine returned back to her spot on the bed. "It's been a while since I've last looked through this." She told her granddaughter, a faint smile on the former's face. An odd feeling arose from Lusamine due to the nature of the album.

"Yay! I wanna see!" Rose squealed in anticipation. From Hau's homemade malasadas to Lusamine's affections, pretty much anything intrigued the 2-year-old.

Stiffling a chuckle at Rose's reaction, Lusamine opened to the first page of the photo album where it started with pictures of her and Mohn during their adult years.

"Wow! You and grampa look so different!" Rose exclaimed in amazement. From the photos, Lusamine's hair was short to the neck while Mohn had a slimmer image. They used to go to the same school where they excelled in advanced science and Pokémon nurturing.

Lusamine proceed to flip to the next page which held pictures of her wedding day, the memories flooding back into her.

"Gramma, that dress is pretty." Rose complimented as she tried to hold the excitement from within her. Aside from Gladion and Lillie's birth and her husband's return, it was the happiest occasion of Lusamine's life. The Aether President recalled the time during her wedding day when she saw Mohn trying to suppress his tears at the altar as she walked down the aisle. After the thought, Lusamine had to hold back a few tears of her own so that her granddaughter wouldn't notice.

"Thank you, dear." Lusamine replied to her granddaughter as she flipped over to the next page that showed moments of Gladion and Lillie's respective births.

As tired as she was in the photos of their births, Lusamine still had a weak smile on her face as she held Gladion in her arms, and then Lillie when they were infants.

"Mommy and uncle were babies, too?!" Rose asked confusedly. That is why Lusamine loved children due to their naivety and innocence.

"Everyone is a baby at one point." Lusamine commented as her lovely gaze never faltered from Rose. The Aether President missed the days when she'd tuck Lillie and Gladion into their beds and afterwards giving them a goodnight kiss. Mohn would also read them bedtime stories before they fully went to sleep. Repeating the same step, Lusamine went to the next page, highlighting the moments of her small family.

There was one of them feeding a group of Pikipek and Rockruffs, the next image showed them on a family vacation to Poni Island, and finally another one that had Mohn picking Gladion and Lillie up with both of his arms. Lusamine also reminded herself how much of a goofball her husband was at the time. Mohn was a seriously dedicated scientist who'd only wanted to make a better world for Pokémon, and for their children. When he disappeared during the Ultra Wormhole Incident, Lusamine's world began to crumble.

At that point, she was driven to find any way to seek her lost husband, even if it meant losing her sanity in the process. But it led to her mistreating Gladion and Lillie, and even innocent Pokémon at the hands of her experimentation. It felt like she tarnished the family name when she corrupted the image of the Aether Foundation that she and her husband have long worked hard for.

Lusamine felt the tears prodding in her eyes, but before she did, she noticed that a slot for a photo was left empty.

"Huh? Where is that photo?" Lusamine questioned in a hushed tone as she lightly shook her head away in order to keep herself together.

"What's wrong, gramma?" Rose asked in concern.

"Oh nothing, sweetie. Just trying to look for something." Lusamine assured the 2-year-old as she tried to remember what the image was. The Aether President vaguely remembered doing something to that photo, but she couldn't figure out what she did to it, and why. After being cured of the neurotoxins, Lusamine's memory became fuzzy, often forgetting certain moments of her life. But somewhere in her heart, that picture held dear to her.

Defeated, she proceeded to the next page, but it was empty, and so were the next ones. Lusamine realized that she didn't add any more photos after the incident. Still, she didn't know as to why that one photo was missing.

However, the door rang, which signaled from their arrival.

Setting the album aside, Lusamine brought Rose out of the bed so that they could say hello to their visitors. "Come one, little one. Your parents are here." Lusamine said as she held Rose's hand with hers, heading off to the main lobby.

"Mommy and daddy are here!" Rose shouted in joy.

Once there, Lusamine opened the door, which revealed Sun and Lillie in their formal attire.

"Hello, Rose!" Sun and Lillie greeted their child in unison. Rose simply waved at her parents.

"Hi, mommy and daddy! I had so much fun today!" The 2-year-old pointed out rather loudly. Lusamine simply crossed her arms at the sight of her granddaughter, somewhat feeling proud for being blessed with such a perfection.

"Oh, and what activities did you do with grandma and grandpa?" Lillie asked Rose as she knelt down to her child, giving her a signature bop on the forehead which elicited a giggle from her.

"Grampa and gramma helped me feed the Pokémon, and she showed me her picture book!" Rose admitted as she hugged her mother. The last statement had Lillie on high alert.

"I see." Lillie replied as she let go of her embrace and directed her attention to Sun. "Dear, can you take Rose over to see my father? I just want to talk to mother about something."

Sun was a tad puzzled but adhered to her request. "Sure thing, Lillie. Come one, Rose. Up you go." He then brought his daughter up to his arms as he guided the both of them from the house and to the main building of Aether Paradise.

Lusamine didn't know the reason behind Lillie's action, but she'd find out eventually. The Aether President noticed that Gladion wasn't with them. "Where is your brother, Lillie?" Lusamine asked as she crossed her arms, a curious expression on her face.

"He is with father at the moment." Lillie answered as she went back to her original plan. "So, you showed Rose the old photo album, right?

"I did, but at the end of it, there was one photo missing." Lusamine revealed.

Lillie went through her purse as she was trying to find something. Once she found the object of interest, Lusamine was taken as her daughter presented it to her.

It was an old, crumpled photo of Mohn, Lusamine, Gladion, and Lillie all together. It showed Lusamine wrapping her arms around her children while Mohn had his hands on her shoulders. Their faces were entirely jubilant. Another reminder of their Better Days.

Tears started to cascade down the Aether President's face as she remembered that the photo was taken days before the incident.

"W-where did you find that p-photo?" Lusamine choked out as she started to quiver in shock. Lillie had a calm and collected stance at the moment, but she wanted to share the same reaction with her mother.

"Wicke gave it to me. What happened is that when I ran away, you gotten so angry that you threw the photo aside and neglected it. After the events of the UB incident, I was given the photo from her, and it's been with me since then." Lillie explained as she gave the photo to Lusamine who grabbed the photo in haste. The Aether President had finally finished filling in the gap in her memory.

All that the Aether President did was stare at the photo, telling herself that while those days were taken away from her, new ones could be reformed, especially with Rose in the mix. Lusamine soon collapsed on the floor to her knees as sobbed her heart out while clutching the photo to her chest.

That did it for Lillie as she rushed to her mother, hugging her tightly as her own tears started to fall. She rubbed her mother's back for comfort in order to quell her heaving.

"I used that photo to remind myself that when Rose was born, we would have a family that you'd be p-proud of." Lillie told her mother, her own voice breaking down. When she looked at her mother, the latter had a smile on her face despite it being stained from her tears. "I'm sorry for n-not giving it back to you."

"Of c-course I'm proud of you, Lillie. Also, don't worry a-about it." Lusamine sniffled as she hugged her daughter, with the photo in one hand. "I understand that while it may never be the same as back then, I know that with how things are going in your case, you and Sun would never make the same mistakes that I committed."

The two proceeded to hug each other for a moment until Lillie broke the silence. Regaining her composure, she resumed back to talking with her mother. "I suppose that you're going to keep that photo, right?"

Lusamine shook her head negatively in response. "No, because I know that it's in good hands."

"But, this is your most prized possession, mother." Lillie protested in response. She knew how much her mother had valued the photo.

"Correct. Nonetheless, knowing that you and Gladion are growing up in this world is good enough for me. Just look at Rose for example." Lusamine concluded as she rose up from the floor along with Lillie. "Use that photo as a sort of guidance." The Aether President handed the photo right back to Lillie.

"I will, mother." Lillie promised as she put the photo back into her purse. Then, she hugged her mother once more.

"Thank you, mother." Lillie whispered.

"You're welcome, dear. Know that I'm so proud of your accomplishments, even as you grow in this world." Lusamine responded as she hugged her daughter again. Lillie was a 25-year-old woman now, already becoming a figurehead of the Aether Foundation, and maybe much more than that in the future. Also, she had a wonderful husband and a loving daughter by her side, along with amazing friends. "Let's head over to the Conservation Area in order to meet up with Gladion, Rose, and our husbands, right?"

"Of course, mother." Lillie agreed as they left the mansion.

If the time came for Lusamine to be blessed with more grandchildren, she would gift them the love that she couldn't give to Gladion and Lillie at the time. After all, she still hadn't finish making amends to her actions because otherwise that would make a terrible grandmother. Also, Lusamine know truly grasped at the old saying that 'a picture is worth a thousand words'.


End file.
